Girls und Panzer: Relikte
by bumble01
Summary: Nanako Sakata has been in love with tanks since she was a little girl, but Poppy Girls Academy hasn't had a team for years. All that changes however when the school restarts the Tankery team in preperation for the 64th National High School Tankery Tournament. Guns will roar and tanks will advance as Nanako tries to lead her team to victory in Girls und Panzer: Relikte!


**CHAPTER 1.**

IN WHICH NANAKO SAKATA AND FRIENDS ENJOY THEIR FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL.

A million thoughts ran through Nanako's mind as she reached her arm out, her entire body screaming in protest as her body weight shifted. Was she too late? was it too far? None of that mattered now, she had already committed her body to the movement, her feet leaving the ground. She didn't know if what she was making the right call, but she had to try, it was her duty, her purpose.

"And thaaats a goal!" Akiri shouted in joy as the soccer ball whizzed past Nanako's fingertips. Nanako crashing into the sand, having attempted to dive and stop the ball.

"Damn it...I thought I had it." Nanako grumbled, getting to her feet and brushing the sand off her clothes.

"I guess I'm just too fast for you, gonna start calling myself lightning legs." Akiri grinned and chuckled, putting her hands on her hips. Akiri was a small and slender girl, standing at 144 centimeters. She had short wavy red hair that hung just past her head, and bright blue eyes.

"If you start calling yourself that you won't get to come over for dinner anymore." Another girl pitched in, scooping up the ball with one had and rolling it back towards Akiri, who stopped it with her foot. This girl was Sukara, she was the tallest of the bunch at 164 centimeters. Her long blonde hair was done up into two braids that hung down past her shoulders. A pair of dark sunglasses adorned her face, covered up her brown eyes.

"What's the matter eh, you can't handle my power?" Ariki smirked and started to take a few steps back, lining up for another kick. Sukara just rolled her eyes and stepped in front of the net, patting Nanako on the shoulder. Without any words exchanged, Nanako got the hint and ran off to the side, watching in anticipation. Sukara jumped up and down slightly before cracking her knuckles.

"Alright then, here I come!" Akiri yelled, running forward and delivering a devastating kick, the ball rocketed through the air towards the net, but Sukara was ready. The blonde leapt off the ground and slammed the ball back at Akiri with her forehead. Akiri only had time to yelp before the ball slammer in the side of the face. She stumbled back for a moment before toppling to the ground in a daze.

"Akiri!?" a voice called from the side and Hina ran up to Akiri, kneeling next to her. Hina was of a rather average in her build at 158 centimeters tall, with soft facial features. Her black hair was done up in a messy bun, with her bangs almost covering her deep green eyes.

"Owwwww...you could have just hit it into the ground ya know" Akiri moaned, sitting up and rubbing the side of her face. Sukara smiled and walked over to the other girls, reaching out her hand.

"Aww but where would be the fun in that," she stuck out her hand to Akima, "Come on lightning legs, let's have another go." Akiri just giggled and took her hand, using it to pull herself up. Hina sighed and walked over to Nanako as the other two went at it again, ending with a similar result, minus the ball hitting the face.

"So, you getting excited? It's gonna be our second year starting tomorrow." She asked cheerily. Nanako just nodded and rubbed her arm, a disappointed look on her face. Nanako was the second tallest of her group of friends at 161 centimeters. She was curvy, with a kind and gentle face, freckles dotting her nose. She wore a pair of round glasses, and her brown hair was done up in a ponytail that ended just at her shoulders.

"Hey, what's going on, you look down." Hina asked gently putting a hand on Nanako's shoulder. Nanako took a deep breath and sighed, closing her eyes for a moment before speaking.

"It just, you know I didn't want to go here…" She looked off to the large school ship docked far off in the harbour, "We just didn't have enough money to switch schools…" Hina nodded and gave Nanako a warm smile, rubbing Nanako's arm.

"I know you wanted to go to one of those Tankery schools, but you'll always have us here, besides, maybe this year will be even better." Nanako smiled slightly and looked at her friends playing soccer on the beach, the sun just beginning to set behind them.

"Yeah...you guys are pretty great," Nanako said after a moment, giggling softly, "I certainly would miss hanging out with you weirdos." She watched as the soccer ball bounce across the sand and into the sea, Sukara and Akiri chasing after it. The group of friends continued to play on the beach for about an hour before eventually packing things up and heading back to the school ship. The docks were lit up in a pail yellow glow as the ship's crew worked into the night, moving out large containers from the ship's hold and hoisting them up via crane to the deck.

"What do you think they are doing?" Akiri asked as the group began to board the ship. They watched as another, much larger container was dragged out, the crane struggling to raise it up.

"Well whatever it is it must be important, they are working awfully late." Nanako said simply. Turning her attention towards the lights of the city. Once they had boarded, they all said their goodbyes and went their separate ways, which for Nanako just meant going home. Her family's house was nestled in the residential area of the ship, connected to their shop. Her family operated the only tank memorabilia/Tankery stores on the whole ship, and thus had cornered the market. Unfortunately for them, there wasn't that much business to be found on board.

Poppy Girls Academy had never been well known for Tankery, closing down the program some twenty years ago with a few other schools after a decade long losing streak. The school chose to rebrand itself, and became one of the leading schools for those seeking to become, archaeologists, and historians. Nanako had lived on board with her family all her life, and practically knew the whole deck of the ship. She had been down every road, been in every store, and played in every alley. Her mother had instilled in her a love of tanks and Tankery from a young age, having been a member of the school's team in her youth. Nanako dreamed of growing up to play the sport and emulating her mother, but they simply couldn't afford to send her to another school, so here she was, suck at Poppy.

"Mom, Dad, I'm home," Nanako called as she opened the front door to her house. The house neat and tidy, with photos and painting dotting the walls. The whole house currently smelled like a bakery, which meant one thing, her mother had made buns.

"Nanako dear, come in the kitchen and try one of these." Her mother's voice called from a distant room. Nanako made her way to the kitchen and was smacked right in the face with the smell of fresh buns, way stronger than it had been near the front door. Nanako's mother sat at the table, currently cutting some of the buns in half. She had long flowing brown hair, and had a kind and gentle expression.

"Here, try one of these, I switched up the recipe this year." Her mother said with a smile, motioning to the stack of buns. Nanako nodded and picked one up, taking a bite. It was soft and fluffy, just as Nanako expected, she couldn't help but smile.

"It's really good." Nanako said in between bites, her mother simply laughing sweetly.

"Well I'm glad you enjoy it, you should think about heading to bed soon, you got a big day tomorrow." Nanako nodded and gave her mother a thumbs up, taking another bite before shuffling out of the kitchen and upstairs to her room. She quickly finished her bun before changing out of her clothes and into her pajamas, then heading off to have a shower. Once that task had been completed, she tucked herself into her bed with a sigh. She looked around her room for a moment, making out what she could in the dark. Her room had a few posters and models of tanks, all of which she had bought from their own shop, but other then that it the room was now rather bland. Nanako let out a soft sigh, rolling over and staring at the wall, eventually drifting off to sleep.

* * *

The sun rose early the next day, and Nanako with it. She sat up in her bed with a yawn and stretched, looking out her bedroom window. Seagulls did circles in the distance as clouds rolled by, you couldn't quite tell from here, but Nanako guessed that they must have set sail some time during the night. The brunette crawled out of bed and began her morning routine, shower, clothes, hair, makeup, breakfast. After all that had been completed, she grabbed her bag and headed to school. The streets of Poppy were alive and busy today as many people walked to and fro, buying and selling good, or enjoying and pleasant morning conversion. As she walked, Nanako saw many other girls heading to school as well, all of them dressed similarly in the school's uniform. The uniform was elegant in its simplicity, consisting of a simple white dress shirt, a high waisted wine red pinafore dress with matching string tie, and a pair of thigh high black stockings.

They were all headed to Poppy Girls Academy, which once it came into view, contrasted heavily with the other modern buildings of the ship. The school looked like more of a victorian palace, with large overhangs and pointed towers. It was constructed out of faded red brick and grey stone, with large frosted glass windows dotting its sides to allow in some natural light. Nanako was just about to the schools front entrance, when she felt someone nudge arm.

"Strange to see you up this early." Akiri teased. Nanako just rolled her eyes and smiled.

"Well it is the first day of school, I can't afford to be late." She responded simply, pulling open the door and holding it open for Akiri and a few other students.

"So what is your first class? I have biology." Akiri asked as Nanako slipped inside. She clearly didn't like having biology first thing, as a massive frown had crept across her face.

"I believe I have math, so I better head that way, I'll see you at lunch right?" Akiri nodded and brushed some hair out of her face.

"Lunch sounds good, plus then we will get our elective forms. We doing archery again this year?" Akiri asked with a smile.

"Probably," Nanako responded with a shrug, "Archery was pretty fun last year. Anyway we should head to class, see you later." The duo nodded and went their separate ways, heading off to their respective classes. The morning classes always seemed to go by quickly, with math passing in a flash followed by history. Before Nanako really realized it was already lunchtime. She headed down to the schools cafeteria, a large spacious room with elegant trim and decorations, chandlers spaced out across the ceiling. The brunette got her lunch and then went to find her friends. They were sitting at the same table they had all ate at last year, having a somewhat heated discussion.

"I'm telling you, St. Gloriana is gonna win this year." Sukara said, crossing her arms and leaning back in her chair. Hina shook her head and sighed, tapping the table in frustration.

"You said that last years and look what happened, Ooaria came out of left field and won." Akiri nodded, swallowing down some food, clearly having something to add.

"I bet you they're gonna win, they may not have the numbers but they sure are creative." Nanako sighed and sat down rolling her eyes.

"Are you guys actually doing this again? I like the sport way more then you do, that doesn't mean I'm gonna put money on it." Sukara nodded eagerly and adjusted her sunglasses.

"Well we gotta do something to keep it interesting. Put some money down, it won't hurt." The other two nodded in agreement, contributing to the peer pressure.

"Fine...who can I bet on?" Nanako grumbled, popping some sushi into her mouth.

"Well I am putting my money on Kuromorimine," Hina said with a smirk, obviously feeling secure in her choice, "Sukara is taking St. Gloriana again, and I believe Akiri is going with Ooaria" Hina looked at Akiri to be sure, whole threw up and thumbs up as she slurped down some noodles. Nanako thought for a moment, weighing her options.

"Pravda...they had a pretty good run last year, and have done well consistently for a few years. How much is everyone betting?" Nanako asked curiously. Akiri put up and finger as if to say something, only to take a large sip from her soup bowl.

"Two thousand yen." she said after setting the bowl down with a gasp. Nanako nodded and frowned, already regretting her choice, maybe she should have picked a different team.

"So how was everyone's first classes?" Hina asked with a pleasant smile, having calmed down now that the betting was over.

"Uuuuhhhggg, it was awfuuuuul," Akiri groaned, throwing her head back, "I haaate biology, it's so boooring." Nanako giggled slightly, resting her arms on the table.

"Well my classes were okay, we didn't really have time to get into anything though." Sukara nodded and sat forward, about to says something when one of the cafeteria staff approached their table holding a stack of paper.

"If you girls could please select one of the mandatory electives from this list and hand it in at the submission box near the door, that would be lovely." She then passed out four sheets of paper, before moving to the next table and repeating her spiel. Nanako looked around and noticed other members of staff doing the same thing, some tables already had there paper as well.

"We are doing archery again, right?" Akiri asked, taking a pen from her bag and beginning to fill it out. The others. Nanako included, nodded, grabbing their pens and beginning to fill out the form. It was just the usually information at first, name, birthday, signature, stuff like that. Only when you flipped it over could you find the list of electives. Nanako started reading through the options, Archery, calligraphy, flower arrangements. She was about halfway through when her three friends all gasped in rapid succession. She looked at them confused.

"What, you guys okay?" Sukara quickly reached over and pointed to the bottom of the page. Nanako followed her finger with a puzzled expression, reading the word she was pointing at, Tankery. Nanako's heart practically stopped and she dropped her pen, she couldn't believe it, Tankery. She looked back up to her friends, all of them sporting a similarly shocked expression. Nanako quickly looked back down again and snatched up her pen, filling in the box with a shaky hand. Akiri then started to giggle, filling it in as well.

"Well I guess I'm not doing archery this year." She giggled again, looking at Nanako who was still in disbelief.

"I get you're excited but come on now, no need to have a panic attack." Sukara smirked and patted Nanako on the shoulder. Nanako nodded and slowly began to relax, taking a deep breath.

"Tankery guys...I...we can take Tankery," Nanako looked at her friends with a massive girn, "you guys are doing it too, right?"

"Well I don't think we have much of a choice, if we don't I doubt you would let us hear the end of it." Sukara chucked and filled in the box. Hina took a nervous breath, and picked up her pen as well.

"As long as I don't get hurt...I'll join." She murmured, doing the same as the others.

"Now, before any of us forget to check, where are we supposed to me for it," Akiri said with a grin and quickly read it over, "It says the new garage…" Nanako's eyes widened.

"That's what they were building those for over the break! Remember the garages they were building just through the trees that nobody was allowed to go see." The group nodded. The cafeteria was then filled with the sound of bells signaling the end of lunch time. Nanako quickly stood up and folded up her paper, the rest of her friends joining her. They made their way over to the submission box, Nanako holding the paper close to her chest. She slid the paper through the slit in the box and looked back at her friends.

"Let's meet out front after class okay" she grinned and took off towards her next class in a skip.

"Is it too late to change our bets?" Sukara asked and crossed her arms, the other two laughing.

* * *

The afternoon classes seemed to drag on for what seemed like forever, but eventually the merciful bell rang, releasing Nanako from hours of anticipation. She quickly made her way from the second floor down to the first, and then out front where her friends were already waiting.

"Come on guys, lets go!" Nanako exclaimed, the others simply nodding and following her lead. The group circled around the school out towards the back. Behind the school was large open field that was used for various activities. However, there was now a dirt road that ran along the side of this field leading to the forest far on the other side of the field, where you could now just barely make out a large grey building. They followed the road into the forest, coming upon the large building. Shipping containers were staked off to one side, and already a small group of students had started to gather.

"That's what they were pulling out from the hold of the ship last night!" Nanako said excitedly, pointing to the shipping containers.

"Yeah, I wonder how long the school had this planned for, they kept it under wraps pretty well." Sukara said curiously, adjusting her sunglasses. They stood there for about ten minutes, mingling with the other students as the last few gathered. After about ten minutes, the faint rumble of an engine could be heard growing closer. All the girls quickly turned their attention to watch as a Rolls Royce armored car, painted a deep dark green, rolled around the corner and in front of the garage, the schools emblem emblazoned on its side. Out of the top hatch poked the upper torso of a woman. She had silvery while hair that was flowed smoothly over her shoulders and down her back. Her eyes were green, and she had a warm and welcoming smile.

"Greetings girls," she said as she pulled herself out of the cars hatch and vaulted off to one side, landing on the ground. She was dressed in a brown army tunic and black tie, with black skirt that hung about her knees. The tunic was clearly designed to resemble a british officers uniform from the First World War. "I am Mrs. Chino, and I am to be one of your Tankery instructors, if my partner, Mrs. Sakata would please step out, we can begin." Nanako's eyes widened when she heard her family name called. The side door of armoured car opened and her mother stepped out, wearing a similar uniform to Mrs. Chino. Nanako locked eyes with her mother, the two of them smiling at each other for a brief moment.

"Well hello everyone, I am Mrs. Sakata, I am happy to have the privilege of teaching you fine young girls our art." She said smoothly, looking to her companion.

"Now, before you begin, I am sure some of you are wondering why we suddenly have a Tankery team. Well, let me elaborate," Mrs. Chino started to pace slowly, "The school came to a decision near the end of last year that it was time to restart our tankery program. The success Ooaria had last year when they restarted their team has given Poppy, as well as a few other schools, a reason to resurrect our teams." A few of the girls murmured to each other, but the rest remained quiet.

"The school then asked me and Mrs. Chino if we would be your instructors, an offer we both readily accepted. Now, I'm sure you girls are eager to learn what you will be operating this year. Well, let me show you." Nanako's mother walked over to a side door and opened it, pressing a button on the inside. The garage doors slowly began to creak open, filling the garage with light. The girls all quickly turned to see. The first tanks Nanako could make out were two Renault FT's, the next was the iconic shape of a Mark V landship, then a Saint Chamond. The final tank she recognized was an A7V, but there were some others she didn't recognize or couldn't make out as they lurked in the shadows. Immediately she realised these were all old, horribly outdated tanks.

"Now...unfortunately our school does not have the funds to acquire any newer, more up to date tanks, but thankfully we have some tanks left over, along with a plethora of extra parts. We did most of the repairs and upgrades on them below deck," Nanako's mother said with a smile, giving the FT a pat on the barrel, "I'll let you girls get acquainted with them while we call you one by one for uniform measurements. Immediately the girls erupted into the talking as they walked into the garage spreading out amongst the vehicles.

"Nanako, what is your mom doing here?" Akiri asked, just as bewildered as Nanako.

"I don't know, I'm just as confused as you are!" Nanako exclaimed, walking up to the Landship and brushing off some of the dust. "Look at her, isn't she beautiful." Nanako began to circle the tank when she saw something large at the far end of the garage. She ran over quickly, Akiri and Sukara chasing after her. The tank was over ten meters long, with two cannons sticking out of the side they were on.

"What...is that?" Sukara said, looking up at the hulking tank.

"It's...its a K Panzerkampfwagen, it's one of the largest tanks ever built, it never saw action but...look at it!" Nanako exclaimed with laughter, looked back to her friends with a massive grin.

"You look like a kid in a candy store, you know that?" Sukara said with a smile, patting Nanako on the shoulder, "Glad your happy" Akiri nodded in agreement and ran off to look at some of the other tanks.

"Nanako Sakata!" Mrs. Chino called. Nanako gave Sukara a quick hug before running over to where the two instructors were. "My don't you look happy, your mom said would be like this." Mrs. Chino said with a smile, starting to take Nanako's measurements.

"Yeah...it's like the best day ever, how long did you know about this mom!?" Nanako's mother smiled and shrugged.

"Since last year, I didn't want to spoil the surprise," She walked up and ruffled Nanako's hair, pointing over to one of the FTs, "That's what I drove when I was here, Mrs. Chino was the tanks commander."

"Yes I was, we sure had some wild rides in that little machine." She chuckled as she wrapped the tape around Nanako's waist.

"That's so cool...we have a K Wagon...and…what are those three tanks off to the left?" She pointed to a row of three tanks she had never seen before.

"We got the K Wagon the year we shut down the team, we never even got to use it…" Mrs. Chino said sadly as she put the tape around Nanako's head.

"Those three there are an FCM 1A, a Leichter Kampfwagon II, and Holt Gas-Electric Tank, we never did get that last one working properly." Nanako's mother laughed as Mrs. Chino took away the tape measure. "There you are, all done, go look around some more" Nanako nodded and ran back to the garage. It took about half an hour for every girl to get measured, and once that had been completed, the instructors walked up to address the group.

"Well you all certainly look excited, please, if you wouldn't mind, separate into we will get you assigned to your different tanks." Mrs. Chino said, tapping her clipboard, "However, first, I must give you a run down of the rules of Tankery." The girls nodded and she began listing off various rules and pieces information, stuff like not firing on a knocked out tank, or what the different crew positions did. After she was finished began mulling about, splitting themselves into a few different groups of different sizes. Nanako of course stood with her friends.

"So...which one do you guys think?" Nanako said with an excited smile.

"Well I don't know much about any of these things, but I like the look of the toaster on treads" Sukara said with a chuckle, nodding in the direction of the A7V.

"Yeah...that one looks pretty safe…" Hina mumbled nervously, rubbing her arm. Akiri simple shrugged, smiling happily.

"I'm fine with whatever you guys choose, as long as there is a space for me in it." Akiri said, looking to Nanako to make the final decision.

"Well...all of them look really fun...but I think the A7V is the choice for us...thats what its called by the way." She looked at Sukara with a smirk. The other group continued to deliberate for a few moments before Nanako's mother stepped forward.

"That should be enough time, I believe some of you are already eyeing up your choices. If you would all please approach your chosen vehicles." The girls all shuffled nervously towards their choices, standing next to their big metal machines. "Excellent, now, we would like you all to sort yourselves into crew positions and enter your vehicles" Nanako looked the tank over, pulling open a few of the hatches.

"So...it seems we really don't need more people to operate this, what do you guys wanna do? We need a commander, a driver, a gunner, and a loader." Sukara almost immediately piped up.

"Well, obviously you should be the commander, but I wouldn't mind trying to drive." Nanako rubbed the back of her neck nervously, she had no idea how to command a tank and wasn't even sure if she would be able to.

"Oh oh, and how about Hina shoots the cannon, she was always a good shot in archery...and I guess I could load." Akiri said eagerly, patting Hina on the shoulder who somehow managed to look even more nervous then Nanako did.

"B-but won't that be loud…" Hina whimpered.

"Ahh you'll be fine, come on guys, let's get in." Akiri said, quickly climbing into the tank and disappearing. The others followed one by one, Nanako and Sukara climbing up on top and through the top hatches.

"Ow ow oww" Sukaru groaned as she squeezed herself down into the driving compartment. Nanako sighed and sat herself down in the commander's area. There she found a throat microphone as well as a radio, which she quickly put on. The other girls all found headsets to put on, except for Sukara, who a voice pipe that connected directly to the commanders position.

"Hey, can you guys all hear me?" she asked, there was a moment's pause before each one responded. She smiled and poked her head out, watching as two girls crawled their way into one of the FTs. Once everyone had boarded their tanks, Mrs. Chino stepped forward.

"Alright girls, I want you all to start your tanks up and follow me, we are going to give you all a baptism by fire." Nanako eyes widened and she slipped back down into the tank, flipping through the tanks manual book.

"Hey Sukara, there should be a crank somewhere near you, that should turn on the engines." She said into the voice pipe.

"Okay, I think I see it, hold on," there was a muffled sound of something hitting metal, "Owwwww" Nanako stifled and laugh and poked her head out again. The Mark V had begun to crawl it's way forward, it commander, a girl with very messy black, barking orders into her mic. Suddenly the A7V started to rumble, the rumble turned into a growl as the engines came alive.

"Okay, ummmmm, Sukara take us forward." The tank suddenly lurched as the tracks dug in, pulling the massive machine forward. Nanako carefully guided the tank to fall in behind the Landship, which was keeping pace with the armoured car in front of it.

"You having fun back there!?" The messy haired girl shouted, spinning around to face Nanako.

"Yeah, I've dreamed of this all my life!" Nanako shouted back, straining her voice. The girl nodded and grinned, tapping the top of her tank.

"That's good, I'm Bashira Ito!" The girl seemed to be really enjoying herself

"Nanako Sakata, nice to meet-" She was cut off when she felt something impact the rear of her tank. She spun around quickly to see the commander of one of the FT's with her hands over her mouth. She had short black pigtails, and looked as if she was a first year.

"I'm sorry, this thing is a little fast!" She cried, sinking down in her turret so only her eyes stuck out." Nanako smiled and shook her head, giving her a thumbs up.

"You're all good, it will take awhile to get the hang of it!" The black haired girl nodded and slowly emerged from the tank. One by one the rest of the tanks fell in line as the armoured car led them into a massive wooded area, crisscrossed with roads, fields, and hills. Mrs. Chino spun her cars turret around and spoke into a handheld microphone, her voice emerging from the radio in Nanako's position.

"Okay girls, we are going to guide you one by one to a starting location. Once everyone is in position, I'll give the signal to begin, from then on it's a free for all. Last tank still functioning wins." Nanako gulped spoke into her mic.

"Have you guys figured out how to get the gun loaded." Hina's voice crackled back quickly.

"We sure did. This is kinda cool actually." Nanako could see the tank's cannon wiggling back and forth in front of them.

"These shells sure are heavy though, my arms already hurt" Akiri whimpered. After awhile they were guided to their starting location, a small clearing in the trees. After a few minutes of sitting around, during which Nanako took the opportunity to read the manual, Mrs. Chino's voice came through.

"Alright, before we start, please all of you bow." Nanako tilted her head forward for a moment, bowing. "Alright, let the free for all match begin.!" Nanako took a deep breath and set the manual down.

"Sukara, take us forward and onto that road." There was a short delay before the tank slowly trundled forward, Nanako keeping her head on a swivel. "Okay...umm take a left and follow the road." The tank slowly began to turn, scraping against a tree as it did so, causing Nanako to cringe.

"Sorry sorry, I...ow...can't see." Sukara said in a frustrated tone as the tank finished its turn onto the road. They rolled along for a few minutes before they came to a large field.

"Stop the tank" she ordered, the tank grinding to a halt. Nanako narrowed her eyes and scanned the ridge ahead of them, she could see exhaust smoke just over a small hill in front of them. "Take us forward at full speed" Nanako ordered, and the tank started up again. It began to crawl a little faster then Nanako actually expected, trundling along towards the hill. They soon were making their way up the hill, and once they crested it, Nanako could see the the odd looking Holt Gas-Electric Tank making its way across the field only 50 or so meters away. The tank commander was looking around with a pleasant smile on her face until she spotted the A7V.

"Hina take aim!" Nanako watched as the cannon slowly adjusted, fixing squarely on the Holt, which was beginning to make a turn toward them. "Fire!" Without a second of delay, the boom of the cannon filled the air, the shell smashing into and through the side of Holt. The tank continued on its turn for a moment before coming to stop, as small white flag emerging from the top.

"I hit it...I actually hit it!" Hina exclaimed excitedly. Nanako was about to congratulate her when a shell wizzed overhead.

"Oh my god!" Nanako yelled, ducking down into the tank. She quickly began to look around when she spotted the Saint Chamond to their right far on a tall nearby hill. "Make a right turn and rush the hill, its cannon can only aim down so far." Nanako ordered, her tank rotating to the right before advancing quickly. Another flash emerged from the Saint Chamond and a shell smashed into the ground next to them, throwing dirt up into the air. "Do you have another shell loaded!?" Nanako asked desperately, waiting for a response.

"Akiri is strugging with it, it's too heavy." Nanako gulped watched as the Saint Chamond's gun aimed down at them, then stopped, they were too low.

"Ahaha, we did it, quickly now, before they…" She froze as the enemy tank began to make it way down the hill at a rapid pace. "Reverse, reverse quickly!" She barked, the tank shuddering as it went from traveling as fast as it could forward, as fast as it could backwards. The Saint Chamond was almost at the bottom of the hill, and as soon as they were, they would have a clear shot on the now defenseless A7V. Nanako held her breath as the enemy tank reached the bottom of the hill, then as its cannon and front end dug into the dirt. She let out a sigh of relief, watching the Saint Chamond came to a sudden stop, it's tracks spinning helplessly for a moment before a white flag appeared.

"Okay we are...loaded...oh" Hina said, sounding somewhat disappointed.

* * *

Meanwhile in another part of the forest, Sana Wakino was watching in panic as both FT's, as well as the LK II circled her K Wagon, firing ineffective volley after ineffective volly into the tanks armour.

"Ahhhhh, ahhhhh, FIRE!" She cried, covering her ears as all four of the tanks guns fired at once with a thunderous boom, none of them hitting their targets. "Not all at once!" she whimpered, slinking down into the commanders seat. She just kept watched as the tanks continued to circle. She slowly regained her nerve and set her eyes on the LK II.

"Okay...uhhh cannon three...fire...now!" The cannon roared just in time to intercept the speeding tank, sending it skidding to a halt and knocking it out. "Great! Okay now cannon one...fire now!" Again the shell found it mark, knocking the poor FT onto its side. All that was left was one tank. Okay, cannon two, get ready to…" She paused when she saw out of the corner of her eye, the large FCM 1A peeking through the trees and aiming at her tanks rear. "ROTATE, ROTATE THE TANK NOW!" She cried, but it was too late. The FCM let loose with its cannon, the shell smashing right into the engines and knocking out the K Wagon.

"Sorry Wakino…" the driver whimpered. Sana just slumped down in the commander's seat and took a deep breath

"No it's okay, we tried"

Back at the A7V, Nanako had ordered the the tank up on top of the hill the Saint Chamond had come from and was now engaged in a duel with the Landship, shells flying back and forth, smashing into the ground and bouncing off of armour. Nanako had now closed the tanks hatch and was looking through the viewport, flinching every time the Mark V opened fire.

"Hina, adjust the cannon upwards, we might be able to punch through that flat part of the armour." Nanako said, wincing as another shell bounced off the side of tank, rattling the interior.

"Got it...taking aim!" Hina cried, adjusting the cannon. The A7V let out a defiant roar as fire leapt from the barrel. The shell soared through the air and just barely missed the Landship, blowing a tree to pieces.

"Damn it...down just a hair and we got em." Nanako said, sounding less certain and more desperate. The Mark V unleashed another volley from one turret, this shell smashing into the ground in front of tank and throwing dirt and turf up onto the tank. The Landship then rotated to let the other cannon get a shot. This shell smashed right into the front of the A7V, denting in part of the armour plating with a sickening thud.

"Ahhh, what was that!?" Hina cried out, covering her ears and closing her eyes. Akiri groaned as she slid another shell into the breach, before turning to Hina and grabbing her shoulder.

"Hey, hey it's okay, you can do this, we are counting on you now." Hina took a shaky breath, looking down and taking a shaky breath. She nodded and turned back to the sights, lining up the shot. Hina inhaled sharply and fired. Everything seemed to go into slow motion as the shell flew through the air, finding its mark. The Mark V stopped rotating and for a moment and nothing happened, then the flag appeared.

"Hina oh my god you did it!" Akiri cried, throwing her arms around the stunned gunner. Hina just sat there for a moment in disbelief, she was actually kinda good at this gunning thing.

"Y-yeah...I did it…" she started giggling and hugged Akiri back. Nanako breathed a sigh of relief and slowly re emerged from the tank's cupula.

"Excellent shooting there Hina, Sukara bring us forward." The tank lurched ahead and began rumbling across the field towards the Mark V. Nanako guided then out of the field and back into the trees on a small narrow road which took them back kinda in the direction of the garage. After awhile, Nanako could just faintly hear the sound of rumbling.

"Sukara...turn the engines off." A moment later the tank fell silent, and she could now hear the growl of an engine and the metallic sound of tank tracks claerly, and it was getting closer.

* * *

In the only Remaining Renault FT, Tamiko Kagawa pulled down on her pigtails in nervous frustration. She gave her head a quick shake and opened the turret hatch, looking out behind them.

"I think we lost them...did you see how big that thing was?" She said with a sigh of relief, referring to the FCM A1, which had chased them for a little while, but thankfully the little FT was fast enough to get away.

"Where we off to now then?" The driver said curiously. Tamiko pondered the question for a moment and looked forward.

"Just keep going around that bend, then we will see if we can get into a more open area." The driver nodded in acknowledgment and continued to move the little tank along. Tamiko smiled and slipped back into the commander/gunner position, she loved the feeling of the wind rushing past, but she felt safer in here. She looked through the viewing port just as they rounded the bend, her vision now being occupied by the large tank she had rear ended earlier, its cannon aimed right at them. She didn't even have time to give an order and the A7V fired their gun, the shell smashing into the little FT's engine compartment and sending it spinning. Tamiko braced herself against the turrets walls and groaned, her tank had been knocked out.

"Nice Hina!" Nanako cried in glee, "Start up the engines and advance please, slowly." Sukara groaned and turned the crank, banging her head again. The tank then slowly began its advance, turning around the corner and continuing on the dirt road. They came to a break in the trees that led into another field clearing, this was clearly made by a large vehicle as the tree's had all been pushed over.

"Sukara, take us in there," The tank turned in compliance and began to slowly crawled over the toppled trees. It was slow going, but they eventually got over and back onto solid ground. Nanako could just make out the imprint of large tacks in the dirt, heading forward and down a hill ahead of them. Nanako ordered them over it, and as soon as they neared to edge, she could see the FCM A1. "Keep going Sukara!" Nanako said, ducking down slightly, only keeping her head out as the A7V went over the edge and began to rapidly descend the hill. The FCM began to slowly turn, putting its side to them as it unleashed a shot which slammed harmlessly into the hill side.

"Okay Sukara, right!" The tank groaned as it turned slightly, now heading for the rear of the tank. Nanako crossed her fingers and took a deep breath. "Okay Hina, as soon as you have a clear shot on the backside of that tank you tank it!" Nanako watched as they got closer to the tanks rear and the bottom of the hill. Nanako had no clue if what she was about to try would work, but it was worth a shot.

"Sukara...HARD LEFT!" The A7V complied and jerked hard to the left, going into a skid. Nanako could feel the tanks rear begin to swing as they turned sideways, this lined up the shot perfectly as they slid right past the rear of the FCM. The cannon roared in anger as the shell was launched right up the massive tanks rear, causing the rear to burst into flames. The super heavy tank struggled for a moment before stopping completely, a small white flag popping out of the top and signifying it's defeat.

"All Enemy tanks eliminated, the A7V wins!" Mrs. Chino's voice crackled through. "If everyone could please return to the garages, a maintenance team is already on the way to collect your tanks." Nanako cheered, barely restraining herself from screaming in joy. She sighed happily and pressed her throat mic.

"Great work guys...that was amazing" She said to her crew, climbing out of the tank now and standing fully upright on the top. She watched as the FCM's crew climbed out of their disabled tank, looking around. "Hey guys, come sit up on here, we will give you a ride back!" She called to them over the sound of the engine. The four girls nodded and climbed aboard as Nanako got back into the tank.

"That was one hell of a move," The FCM's commander said with a smile, sticking her hand out, "Toshiko Jinno" Nanako took her hand and shook it. The girl was a fair bit older than Nanako, probably in her second to last year. She had dirty blonde hair done in a sleek bob cut, and was rather well built. The two talked as the tank was driven back to the garages, parking it out in front. Everyone else had already gathered, presumably having walked back earlier. They dismounted a joined the others, Mrs. Chino and Nanako's mother standing there with big smiles.

"You girls all did excellent, you have some things to learn or course, but that is too be expected. Congratulations to the crew of the A7V as well for winning this first mock battle. We will be doing a few more of those in the coming weeks, as well as some other kinds of training. Tomorrow however we will be giving these tanks a fresh coat of paint, and putting the schools emblem on them." Mrs. Chino said, looking to Nanako's mother who nodded.

"That ends our first day of Tankery practice, you girls are free to head home or mingle around here for a bit." The group all breathed a sigh of relief and began to mingle around. Sukara looked a little bit worse for wear, rubbing her head.

"Hey...I don't think I can drive anymore...it's a really small compartment…" Sukara sighed and looked down sadly. Akiri perked up and grinned.

"Oh oh, I can drive, I'm really short and can fit in there. Plus the shells are really heavy and you have those big strong arms." Akiri giggled and squeezed Sukara's upper arm. Sukara rolled her eyes and smiled.

"You're such a dork, I'm gonna head home, I need to lie down after that." Sukara sighed, rubbing her head again. The blonde slowly walked off, Akiri quickly falling in behind her. Hina stayed by Nanako for a bit, her eyes wide.

"Hey...are you okay?" Nanako asked gently, waving a hand in front of her face.

"That was so fun…" Hina said quietly, looking at Nanako, "Can I still be the gunner?" Nanako smiled and tilted her head, giving her a thumbs up.

"Of course you can, you did really well for your first time in a tank!" Hina smiled slightly and nodded.

"Okay, thank you. I'll see you tomorrow." she said and wandered off, waving goodbye as she headed home. Nanako waved back eagerly and sighed happily. She was about to head home too when Bashira, the commander of the Landship, put a hand on her shoulder.

"That was wild eh, all those shells flying around." Nanako nodded and smiled.

"Yeah, rotating the tank back and forth to get both turrets a shot was really smart, you sure gave us quite a scare." Nanako said reassuringly.

"We couldn't seem to hit you accurately though, we only hit you three times." Bashira said in a disappointed tone.

"Well if I could give you a tip, once you rotate the tank, stop for a second to let the gunner adjust. If you do that you'll be a force to be reckoned with." Bashira nodded and rubbed her chin for a moment.

"That's a pretty good idea...thanks I'll keep that mind, see you tomorrow Sakata." Bashira smiled and jogged off, a few of her friends running after her. Nanako looked around and saw that almost everyone had left. She shrugged and started walking, smiling happily. As she exited the forest she could see other girls in the distance near the school practicing archery.

She did miss archery, she had a lot of fun last year, and that was how she met all of her friends. However Tankery was her dream, she had tried so hard to go to a different school, she worked part time, sold her models, but in the end she still didn't have enough. But now it seemed Tankery had come to her. She sighed happily and kicked a rock down the road just as something rumbled up behind her. She turned around quickly, watching as Rolls Royce armored car rolled to a top.

"Hey kiddo, climb in." Mrs. Chino said with a smile, motioning to one of the side hatches. Nanako nodded and eagerly and obliged, climbing into what she assumed to be the gunners seat.

"So, did you have fun today dear?" Her Mother asked, looking over her shoulder from the drivers position.

"Of course I did!" Nanako nodded eagerly, "I can't believe you kept it a secret from me!" Her mother sighed and rubbed the side of her head.

"I know, I know...like I said I wanted it to be a surprise." She said and frowned for a moment, "I almost told you when you didn't get any of those scholarships...it broke my heart to see you like that…" Nanako sighed and looked at her feet.

"Yeah...I miss all my old models…" she said with a quiet whimper, rubbing her arm, Mrs. Chino suddenly perking up.

"You can have all those back by the way." She said with a grin. Nanako looked at her wide eyed and confused.

"Wh-what do you mean!?" She exclaimed.

"Your parents had me buy them all before someone else did. I have them all in a box." Without even thinking, Nanako threw her arms around the woman, hugging her tightly.

"Thank you thank you thank you!" she said in rapid succession. Mrs. Chino just smiled and patted Nanako on the back.

"Don't worry about it, I was young like you when the team shut down. It just makes me happy to see you kids picking up the torch." The trio drove the rest of the way into the residential area talking and laughing as the sun hung low in the sky.

"I'll drop the box off later." Mrs. Chino said as she dropped them off, waving goodbye as he got in the driver's seat and drove away. Nanako waved goodbye and turned around, entering the house. She immediately got slammed with a wave of exhaustion, not realizing how much she had worn herself out.

"Go get some rest sweetie, I'll wake you when it's time for dinner." Her Mother said, patting Nanako on the back. Nanako nodded and walked up the stairs, collapsing on the bed and falling into a deep sleep.

* * *

Authors note - Well I hope you enjoyed that first chapter. I put a lot of work into it, so show it some love and let me know what you think. I'm always looking to improve as well, so if you have any suggestions let me know. I'm sure I got some mistakes in there somewhere as well, so please point them out so I can fix them. Until next time, Panzer Vor! (hehe, that's the only time I said that is this chapter)


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